1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates generally to semiconductor integrated circuit processing, and more specifically to a transistor structure having low contact resistance at the P-N junction or diode where contact or interconnect between at least two regions having different conductivity type occurs, such as in thin film technology.
2. Description of the Prior Art:
PN diode interconnection technology, such as thin-film transistor (TFT) or polycrystalline silicon technology, is used in SRAM and video display technology because of the high density advantage it provides. In thin-film transistor technology, P-channel polycrystalline silicon transistors are generally used as the PMOS load with the NMOS drivers and passgates built in the single crystal substrate. The use of P-channel transistors as the load for the SRAM cell usually results in better electrical characteristics than n-channel transistors, and they are typically faster than resistive loads. Additionally, P-channel transistors provide greater immunity to noise.
In spite of the benefits associated with the use of polycrystalline silicon P-channel transistors as load transistors, a disadvantage arises when interconnection between polycrystalline silicon lines having different conductivity types occurs, causing high resistance contacts to be formed. TFT technology of three polycrystalline silicon layers of different conductivity types will result in polycrystalline silicon interconnect lines of different conductivity making contact. For instance, interconnection between a P+polycrystalline silicon layer and an adjacent N+ polycrystalline silicon layer results in a high resistance contact being formed at the resultant P-N junction. In a three layer polycrystalline silicon transistor, with the second and third layers composed of N+ and P+ materials, respectively, a high resistance contact is formed at the P-N junction between the second and third polycrystalline silicon layers.